Media and advertising companies desire to know who is viewing their media and advertisements. Media monitoring companies accomplish this goal by enlisting a group of panelists and mailing a log to each the panelists. The log allows the panelists to write down the advertisements and media that they viewed. This monitoring method lends itself to problems, as panelists may record incorrect information, forget to record what they viewed, or fail to send the log back to the media monitoring company.
More modern mailable monitoring methods include media monitoring companies sending an electronic mailable meter to each panelist (or household of panelists) that may be installed by the panelist by simply powering the meter and placing the meter near a media location (e.g., near a television set). The mailable meter detects exposure to media and electronically stores a signature of the exposed media in a log. The stored monitoring information is then transmitted back to the media monitoring company, by either mailing the physical meter, electronic transmission, or by any other means.